The vice presidency comes with many humiliations, but perhaps none more so than the humiliation Kamala Harris endured on Monday as she presided over her own defeat certification.
Harris stood at the House podium, gavel in hand and a calm, stoic look on her face, as she presided over the joint session of the House and Senate to officially count the presidential election's electoral votes.
After each state's tally was read out, she declared, “Here are the votes cast for President of the United States.” “Donald J. Trump received 312 votes in the state of Florida.” At that moment, Republican senators stood and applauded. Mr. Harris gave them a small, polite smile as he took his time with them.
Then she continued. “Kamala D. Harris of California received 226 votes,” she exclaimed. This time it was the Democratic Party's turn to stand and applaud. Mr. Harris glanced across the room with a slightly appreciative smile, then gently gave the corpse the gavel and gave the order. After reading the vote confirming J.D. Vance as vice president, she formally ordered the result to be entered into the record.
And with this, Vice President Kamala Harris has officially ended her presidential bid, at least for this election. At that point, members of both parties stood and applauded, seeming to pay homage to the undoubtedly painful task she had just taken on without complaint or opposition.
There's also some relief that everyone got through this moment peacefully, unlike the chaos that visited the Capitol on this day four years ago, when Trump refused to accept defeat and inspired the mob that broke into the Capitol. There was definitely a feeling. Stop counting to prove it.
Harris made no comment while brandishing her gavel beyond her scripted duties, but released a video earlier in the day declaring she was fulfilling her constitutional duty and peacefully We reaffirmed the importance of the transfer of power. After the certification ceremony, she spoke briefly in front of news cameras in the House office building.
“This day was obviously a very important day, and there was a debate about what should be the norm and what should be accepted as a given by the American people. “One of the pillars is that a peaceful peace is maintained 'transfer of power,'” she said. “And today, I did what I have done throughout my career: take seriously the oath I have taken many times to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
She spoke for only about a minute and left without taking any questions. Her face was expressionless and her tone calm. She did not say how she felt about it being the official means of Trump's return to power, nor did she even mention Trump by name. Instead, she stuck to her support for the republican institutions he had challenged four years earlier.
“I strongly believe that America's democracy is only as strong as our will to fight for it – the will of all people to fight for and respect the importance of democracy. ' said Ms Harris. “Otherwise, it becomes very fragile and cannot withstand moments of crisis. And today, American democracy has stood up.”
Unlike Mr. Trump, Ms. Harris did not seek to cast doubt on the election, instead graciously accepting defeat. Neither he nor President Biden are trying to pressure the Justice Department, members of Congress, governors, state legislators or election officials to cancel lost votes, as Trump did four years ago.
She has not filed dozens of lawsuits that would have been dismissed by judges as frivolous or unfounded. She has not repeated false fraud allegations or outlandish conspiracy theories that her advisers have told her are untrue.
Nor would Trump use his role as speaker to deny votes to Trump and Vance, as he tried to force Vice President Mike Pence to do to Biden and Harris in 2021. . Mr. Pence refused. He said he had no such authority, and Congress subsequently passed a law reaffirming that interpretation.
The contrast between January 6, 2021 and January 6, 2025 could not be more stark. Four years ago, a mob that ransacked the Capitol chanted “hang Mike Pence,” prompting the Secret Service to quickly evacuate the outgoing vice president to safety. Harris, then a senator and about to be sworn in as vice president, was at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the time, but was forced to evacuate after a pipe bomb was discovered near a park bench outside.
Harris largely stayed out of public view after the election amid speculation about what her future holds. Some allies want her to run again for president in 2028, while others believe she should run for California governor next year instead. She has not publicly indicated her thoughts beyond saying she plans to continue working.
Harris is not the first vice president to preside over the certification of a defeated presidential candidate. In modern times, two sitting vice presidents who lost painfully close presidential elections, Richard M. Nixon in 1960 and Al Gore in 2000, stood at the podium where she stood and cast votes against them. I had to count.
Hubert Humphrey, another vice president who ran for president in 1968, missed the ceremony to attend the funeral of the first Secretary General of the United Nations, and left the vote counting to Georgia Democratic Sen. Richard Russell and interim president. I left it to you. Senate. Other vice presidents have had to lead vote-counting efforts to certify defeat for reelection, including Walter F. Mondale in 1981, Dan Quayle in 1993, and, of course, Pence in 2021. .
Both Mr. Nixon and Mr. Gore had ample motivation to object to the results they certified. Mr. Nixon lost to John F. Kennedy by about 118,000 votes out of about 69 million cast. Advisers urged him to contest the results, but he refused, arguing it would tear the country apart.
Forty years later, Gore actually won the popular vote by more than 500,000 votes out of 105 million cast, but fell short in the Electoral College. After the Supreme Court concluded a five-week recount in Florida, Gore accepted the justices' decision and congratulated George W. Bush.
Both vice presidents carried out the task of certifying defeat with determination, humor and grace, drawing a standing ovation from members of both parties.
Noting that it was the first time in 100 years that a presidential candidate had finalized the results of an election in which he lost, Nixon called the situation “a striking and eloquent example of the stability of our constitutional system and our system of self-government.” ” he called. . “In our campaign, no matter how hard-fought, no matter how close the election, the loser accepts the verdict and we support the winner,” he said.
When his turn came, Mr. Gore repeatedly denied out-of-order efforts by several House Democrats to challenge Florida's vote. After declaring Bush the winner, Gore said, “God bless our new president and our new vice president,” and added, “And God bless the United States of America.” said.
